Eltariel
'Eltariel '''is an Elven assassin and the last Blade of Galadriel deployed before the end of the Third Age. She was an ally to Talion and Celebrimbor that wielded the light of Galadriel. She helped Talion in his fight against Sauron's army in ''Middle-earth: Shadow of War, after convincing from the wraith Celebrimbor, she took the new ring from Celebrimbor's hand that caused Talion to start dying again, while also becoming one with the wraith. After fighting Sauron atop Barad-Dur and defeating him, Sauron cut her ring finger while Celebrimbor was trying to dominate him, overpowering Eltariel and merging with Celebrimbor to enter a perpetual state of war as a flaming eye on top of Barad-Dur. Eltariel meanwhile took the New Ring to continue her quest and hold back the Nazgûl and ensure they don't leave Mordor. Personality Eltariel is a very determined individual. She approaches any task given with determination and even in spite of impossible odds she refuses to give up and always returns to the battlefield, ready to fight. Eltariel has a rather complicated stance on Rings of Power. During her earlier encounters with Talion and Celebrimbor, Eltariel showed strong distrusts on the Rings, and to an extension, towards Celebrimbor who made them, despite the Wraith affirming that his latest craft is different from the ones that spawned the Nazgul and he too, was a victim of Sauron's schemes. After witnessing that the New Ring was capable of severing Sauron's hold on a Ringwraith (and thus rendering him/her vulnerable to death), Elatriel became somewhat willing to wear the Ring and attempted dominating Sauron with the help of Celebrimbor. Eltariel seems to disdain the idea of using a Ring of Power to dominate Orcs as Talion do, but she's willing, under circumstances, to have consensual alliance with Uruks and Ologs, preferring to win their favor rather than forcing them into her ranks. Appearance Eltariel is an Elf with a relatively slender built, she's thin even in comparison to the most scrawny Uruks. She has a fair skin, sharp pair of eyes with blue irises and blonde hair, most of which are covered by her cowl. Her basic attire consist of a moderately plated full body armor with eagle motif and a cloak that both functions as a cowl and and a cape that reaches to her legs. She carries the sheathes of her twin blades adjacently on her back. This loadout do not inhibit her nimble movements. In the Wraith World, after donning the New Ring, Eltariel appears to glow a gold color. Background At some point prior to the events of Middle-earth: Shadow of War, Eltariel was selected by the Lady Galadriel as her "blade" and, armed with The Light of Galadriel, a powerful artifact, was sent into the realm of Mordor to hunt down the Nazgûl and keep them confined to the Land of Shadow, a task she was initially delighted with, but later came to question as she was left hunting a foe that ultimately remains unkillable, leaving her questioning what the point of her quest is. History Middle-earth: Shadow of War First Meeting Talion Appearing shortly after the downfall of Minas Ithil, Eltariel showed up as Talion was being corrupted and dominated by the Witch-king of Angmar and the other Nine Nazgûl. She briefly protected a partially corrupted Talion from the Nazgûl, using both blade and Light, before she ultimately struck down Talion herself, in order to prevent him from being claimed by the Nazgûl, and racing off to Celebrimbor's barrows to meet up with the undead ranger again. Encountering the fallen ranger back at Celebrimbor's barrows, she sharpened his sword, whilst waiting for him to awaken, expressing minor surprise that Talion was indeed capable of returning from the dead, and briefly attempting to question him on how it feels to die and return to life, before Talion urgently inquired about the fate of the city and the Palantir he had attempted to protect, to which Eltariel confirmed the loss of both to The Dark Lord, Sauron. Whilst conversing with Talion, Celebrimbor noticed her possession of the Light of Galadriel, telling Talion they could use it to recover the ring, assuming that Eltariel like most inhabitants of Middle-Earth were unaware of the Wraiths presence, before she proved him wrong. She inquired about the ring, which Talion explained the purpose of, before realizing the Nazgûl would be drawn to the Rings power. Celebrimbor demanded she hand over Galadriel's Light, to which she strongly rebuffed him, stating that she was willing to use the Light to protect them, but not willing to give it up, before Talion intervened and stated the need to move quickly to stop the Ringwraiths from seizing the New Ring. She and Talion proceeded to rush to Shelob's cave in order to secure the ring, noting that even Shelob's brood feared the Nazgûl, before arriving in Shelob's domain, whilst an attack by the aforementioned Nazgûl was in progress, in order to secure the ring on orders from Sauron. Whilst Shelob was defending herself, Eltariel began building power with Galadriel's light, leaping into the air before landing hard on the stone floor and causing a massive explosion of light, which both injured Shelob greatly and forced the Nazgûl to retreat from the cave. After Talion had re-acquired and donned The New Ring, she confronted him about it and urged him to get rid of it. When he refused she told him that she strikes down those that the ring corrupts, and urges him not to become one of them, telling the ranger that they would meet again and continues to press on alone, leaving Talion and Celebrimbor began to build their army, adopting the persona of the "Bright Lord". Alliance with Talion & Celebrimbor As she stated, Eltariel did indeed meet again with Talion, and together they worked to hold the Nazgûl at bay within Mordor. They uncovered attempts by the Nazgûl's "Chosen" to reclaim the purified Haedir which they repelled, intervened before the Ringwraith's could create powerful Orcs known as "Chosen" and raided another ritual again intended to create more "Chosen" though in doing so, she began to disagree with Talion and Celebrimbor. Eventually Talion and Celebrimbor returned to Minis Ithil, now corrupted and turned into Minas Morgul, where Eltariel joined them, stating that one of the Ringwraith's had retreated there after the three of them drove them from Shelob's cave, stating that all they had managed to do was chase the wraiths off. Progressing through the city and leading Talion and Celebrimbor, during in which the Ranger and Wraith duo dominated a small number of Orcs, they eventually made their way to the upper city, where the Witch-King had secured his dominion with a veil of Shadow, and a Nazgûl in ornate armour descended to confront them on the stairs to the Great Hall, proclaiming that the Witch-King possessed the city, and would soon possess Talion as well. Working with Talion and Celebrimbor they fought the Nazgûl guarding the Great Hall where the Palantir was kept, and she watched as Celebrimbor and Talion dominated the Nazgûl, later revealed to be Suladân, a once great general of men who became corrupted by a Ring of Power given to him by Sauron. Later on in her quest to hold back the Nazgûl, Eltariel again saved Talion from being claimed by the raging Nazgûl known as Helm Hammerhand, after the aforementioned Ringwraith attempted to reclaim the fortress in the icy realm of Seregost. Quickly striking the Nazgûl and forcing him to flee, she told Talion that the wraiths injuries would slow him, before inquiring to Talion about his own, before then rushing off to continue her hunt. Teaming up with Talion they ventured to the icy peaks of Seregost where Hammerhand had fled after Eltariel and Talion repulsed his attempts to reclaim Seregost, and the two defeated the ringwraith. After Talion and Celebrimbor looked inside Hammerhand and saw his past, she witnessed an angry confrontation between the Ranger and the Wraith over Celebrimbor's willingness to stand at Sauron's side when he gave the now fallen Hammerhand the Ring of Power that corrupted and doomed him, and their crafting of a new ring, before she left to continue her quest. Eventually Eltrariel, with Talion and Celebrimbor, went to investigate some haunted ruins in the realm of Gorgorth, where they discovered that one of the Nazgûl, Isildur, one of the former bearers of the One Ring before being struck down by Orcs, was using necromancy to amass a terrible army of Wights that, as noted by Talion, included fallen soldiers and men (though Eltariel no longer considered them such) that had died at Minas Ithil. Battle the necromancer, he threatened Talion, claiming either the ranger would join the Nazgûl, or he would die and necromancer would raise him as a puppet, before being repelled and eventually leaving the elf and ranger to fight against a contingency of Wights, which were led by the former (and now undead) general of Minis Ithil prior to betraying the city, (an act which led to its downfall and seizure by the Witch-King and his fellow Nazgûl) Castamir. Attack on Barad-dûr After Talion and Celebrimbor had built up a sizeable army and the trio had successfully repelled all attacks by the Ringwraith's and ensured that the Haedir were secure and could not be used to track them, Eltariel, Talion and Celebrimbor joined forces one last time to launch the final attack on Sauron's stronghold, Barad-dûr, and end the Dark Lord's reign over Mordor and save Middle-Earth. Standing at Talion's side, she heard as Anarion called out to Talion from Barad-dûr, before he went to deliver a rousing speech to the Orc army he and Celebrimbor had amassed, before joining their charge on the bridge leading to Sauron's Dark Fortress, and his final stronghold in Mordor. Working with the Bright Lord she helped support his Orcs in battle, and later assisted Talion in his fight with Anarion when the Nazgûl returned to again battle Talion, proclaiming that Talion's time had come and they were bound together in their brotherhood. Assisting Talion, Anarion was again defeated, and briefly dominated by Celebrimbor before Talion decided, against the Wraith's wishes, to "release" the Nazgûl, and killed him. Witnessing an angry confrontation between Talion and Celebrimbor, the former of which disagreed with the latter's method of dominating the Ringwraith's, and his intentions to try dominate Sauron and claim the Dark Lord's armies for his own, Eltariel sided with the Wraith, and was quickly offered the chance to don Celebrimbor's new Ring of Power, becoming his vessel and providing her the chance to end her quest and destroy the threat of Sauron and the Nazgûl once and for all. Eltariel ultimately accepted, donning Celebrimbor's Ring, causing the Wraith to officially leave Talion's body and become bound with her. This ultimately caused Talion to begin bleeding from old wounds gained from the sacrifice he endured at the hands of Sauron's Black Captains, and, after briefly comforting the ranger as he died, she and Celebrimbor left him for dead on the bridge to Barad-dûr, as they went on to confront Sauron at the top of his tower. The Blade of Galadriel Claiming The New Ring After doing battle with Sauron, she and Celebrimbor worked to dominate the Dark Lord, before Sauron pulled out a short dagger and proceeded to slice off her ring finger, separating her from the elf Lord, before the Dark Lord merged with Celebrimbor to create the Flaming Eye above Barad-dûr. Awakening in a strange realm, Eltariel was confronted by her Lady Galadriel. She confessed to having failed to defeat the Dark Lord Sauron. Galadriel explained that Celebrimbor and Sauron were now one, before she angrily reminded Eltariel that she was sent to Mordor for the Nazgûl, not Sauron, before commanding that she look to Minas Ithil and the Nazgûl that dwelt within it, claiming that Eltariel knew who she spoke of. Eltariel responded, telling her that Talion was dead, she having left him for dead after she claimed Celebrimbor's Ring, before Galadriel informed her that the ranger now wore Anarion's Ring and he now belonged to Sauron. Eltariel said she could not face him, and pleaded with the Lady Galadriel to let her return home. Galadriel denied her this request, ordering her to wear The New Ring, and finish what she had started in Mordor, and only then could she be allowed to return home. Eltariel said it would be done. Awakening atop Barad-dûr in pain from the loss of two of her fingers, Eltariel briefly bore witness to the Flaming Eye, before she moved to claim The New Ring, which flew to her finger, and upon donning it, provided her with Wraith Fingers in lieu of the ones she lost. Return to Minas Morgul Leaving Barad-dûr, Eltariel followed her Lady's instructions, and infiltrated the city of Minas Morgul. Upon reaching the citadel, Eltariel fights Talion before he reveals that he has not yet succumbed to the power of the ring of Anarion. Instead of continuing to fight, Eltariel decides to aid Talion in his mission to keep the forces of the lord of Mordor at bay while continuing her unending battle with the Nazgul. However it is clear that Talion can not keep the malice of Anarion's ring in check for ever Galadriel warns Eltariel that when the time come she must prevent Talion becoming an unending servant of evil. following their meeting at Minas Morgul Eltariel accompanies the ranger to assist in strengthening the defenses of the diminished fortress of Cirith Ungol. The Shadow Wars and the Ascendants Upon arriving in Cirith Ungol. Talion and Eltariel are met by the overlord of the fortress Akoth who reports the warchiefs guarding the fortress are all dead or dying. Talion suggest gaining more followers using the New Ring, but Eltariel refuses to dominate orcs with the power of the ring. Akoth suggests several captains who would make good allies if Eltariel could recruit them, she then sets off into the caves to find new allies. She proceeds to recruit Ogg, Bow of Morgoth, Ar-Baruk the Thrall and Ar-Kaius the Architect. These band of willing recruits helped Eltariel defend Talion's front in Cirith Ungol against an assault. Victorious,Eltariel got the alarming news from Talion ho returned from Seregost defeated, and the culprit behind the sudden surge of military advances revealed themselves to be Ringwraith sisters who claim defiant to Sauron and the Witch-king. They announced their intent of taking Eltariel and Talion's Rings for themselves and rule over Mordor in the absence of their weakened former master. Eltariel continued her campaign to other fortresses lost to the Nazgul Sisters, resorting to non-conventional takeovers due to Talion's weakened military power. Eltariel made several allies in strange and quirky Uruks along the way, she forged a mutually beneficial alliance with a Dark Tribe "problem-solver" Maku, who helped her recruit two explosive junkies Flak and Torz and plan for further takeovers. She also gained the unconditional loyalty (and infatuation) of Krimp, an Orc with surprisingly reverent views towards Elves. Later, Eltariel have to chose between her then-present ally Ar-Kaius, or the potential recruit Golm who disagree about living space underground. Eventually, Eltariel and her band of recruits managed to retake Nurn after a successful assassination and Gorgoroth with the help of Talion's remaining forces, defeating the Nazgul sisters and banishing them. Seregost, however, was lost forever to all parties due to contamination of extremely toxic agent used to empty the fort Downfall of Talion and After the War of the Ring Talion began to succumb to the Ring in his fingers not long after the recapture of Gorgoroth. Instead of killing him immediately, Eltariel escorted Talion to Minas Morgul to fulfill his final wish of not dying in Mordor, hoping that Talion would be strong enough to undo the Ring from his finger when they arrive. After arriving in Minas Morgul however, the Ring drew out Talion's disappointment in Celebrimbor and Eltariel's betrayal, making him refuse to die and finally denounced himself in front of Eltariel. The Blade was forced to put the newly turned Nazgul down, tough unable to kill him. Talion's downfall marked the end of Eltarel's duty and the Shadow Wars, and she was promptly tasked by Galadriel to "go West". It is revealed in the Epilogue that Eltariel returned to Mordor many times during the War of the Ring and even witnessed the fall of the Flaming Eye and Celebrimbor's escape. She was last seen pursuing Celebrimbor's apparition, claiming that she would "answer his call". Trivia *According to the epilogues of Shadow of War ''and ''The Blade of Galadriel, both Eltariel and Talion were in Gorgoroth when Sauron fell. Tough wether they had contact during this moment is not known. *When killed by an Olog Captain when playing as Eltariel, she might resurrect with her left blade missing, as if it goes through the "sword-breaker" feature in the main campaign. Since the feature is absent in the DLC, this does not affect her performance. **The bug can be fixed by reloading the game or let the feature "completes" itself by killing the Olog Nemesis. *Any ability that Eltariel shares with Talion where there's the word "Shadow" in it have the word replaced by "Spirit". Gallery 0DBD9AF7-78A7-42F2-9195-0B8EDA21A83E.jpeg|Eltariel and Galadriel ACD1F045-31DB-443F-BDE2-DEF48F9D2C45.jpeg 11877434-ECCF-4FE8-A2FB-CF7BAF239940.jpeg